Environment Secretary warns 'exceptional weather' to hit UK

The announcement by Owen Paterson comes as ministers pledge to work closely with power companies to ensure they are sufficiently prepared

A car passes through a flooded road near Yalding, Kent, as more heavy rain is expected to sweep across the country.

Ministers will work closely with power companies to make sure they are prepared for further storms, Environment Secretary Owen Paterson has said.

The announcement comes as Mr Paterson said Britain was facing "exceptional" bad weather, with nearly 50 flood warnings across the west and south coasts.

There should be a brief respite today, but heavy rain is expected in western areas of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland tomorrow as a low pressure system moves in from the Atlantic.

Winds will gust to 50-60mph, the Met Office said, and a combination of lowering pressure and high tides, together with already high levels of ground saturation, bring the risk of flooding.

The Environment Agency is set to issue severe flood warnings - the highest category - for coastal areas, as strong winds combine with high tides and large waves from early tomorrow morning.

Five severe flood warnings, which includes a danger to life, have been issued for Devon. They are the tidal River Torridge, from Weare Giffard to Bideford; the Taw Torridge Estuary; the River Taw, from Bishops Tawton to Barnstaple; north Devon coastal communities, including Westward Ho!, Combe Martin and Lynmouth and the north Devon coast at Ilfracombe.

The Environment Agency has also published two further severe flood warnings for Cornwall.

The first was the south Cornwall coast, from Lands End to Plymouth but excluding Truro and Plymouth Barbican; and the second was the north Cornwall coast from Lands End to Hartland Point, excluding Bude and Wadebridge.

The Thames Barrier in London is also closed today to protect people and property along the river, the agency said.

Additionally, bosses of the energy network companies are due to face questions from MPs over the length of time it took to restore power to homes affected by storms over Christmas. More than 150,000 homes were cut off after strong winds, torrential rain and flooding caused damage to power networks.

Speaking after a meeting of the Government's Cobra emergencies committee in London, Mr Paterson said ministers were now working with power companies, as well as councils, to ensure they were prepared for the storms.

Mr Paterson said: "We had a range of ministers from right across Government attending the meeting, who will be working very closely with local councils, power companies, utility and transport companies, making sure that all of those organisations are absolutely prepared for the bad weather that is coming."

Pete Fox, head of strategy at the Environment Agency said: "We are expecting flooding along the west and south coasts of England and Wales, due to a combination of strong winds, large waves and high tides, from the early hours of Friday and into the weekend.

"Coastal paths and promenades could be highly dangerous as there is an increased risk of being swept out to sea. People are warned to stay away from the shoreline.

"The Environment Agency is monitoring the situation closely, working alongside partners including the Met Office and local authorities. Environment Agency teams are out on the ground making sure that flood defences are in good working order, monitoring sea levels and preparing to issue flood alerts and warnings."